Angry Anthem

A big California insurance company is trying to stir the pot, tapping into Americans' fear of President Obama's health reform.

Anthem Blue Cross is asking its customers to attack Democratic health care reform efforts, Politico.com reports.

In an email with the subject line "Getting Health Care Reform Right" from MyAnthem Employer News, the insurer is encouraging its customers to go to a "grassroots" website set up by its parent WellPoint Inc., contact lawmakers, and spread the word that the health reform plan is bad.

"Regrettably, the Congressional legislation, as currently passed by four of the five key committees in Congress, does not meet our definition of responsible and sustainable reform," according to the email posted on Politico's site.

Specifically, the email says the current reform plan will cause "tens of millions of Americans to lose their private coverage and end up in a government-run plan." It says the reform will limit customers' choices of products and how they purchase health care and it will increase the premiums for those who have private insurance coverage. Anthem is a major insurer in California, and Wellpoint is one of the biggest in the country, with more than 33 million members.

The claim that tens of millions will lose private insurance and end up on a government plan is exaggerated, according to almost every analysis. But clearly there will be some market disruption if Democrats proceed with a plan to create a government-run health plan to compete with private insurers.

President Obama has said people who like their private insurance can keep it. While it's true that the government isn't specifically proposing moving people into a public-run insurance program, reform and market forces could convince some employers to change or drop their insurance plans, according to FactCheck.org, which is run by the Annenberg Public Policy Center.

The proposal for a government plan is one of the most unpopular parts of the reform and is, at best, on life support. Still, Anthem and Wellpoint are striking while Americans' tempers are hot.